Known in the art is an internal combustion engine which arranges, in an engine exhaust passage, an exhaust purification catalyst, which arranges, downstream of the three-way catalyst in the engine exhaust passage, an NOX selective reduction catalyst, which arranges upstream of the exhaust purification catalyst in the engine exhaust passage, a hydrocarbon feed valve. A precious metal catalyst is carried on an exhaust gas flow surface of the exhaust purification catalyst and a basicity layer is formed around the precious metal catalyst. A first NOX removal method for reducing NOX contained in an exhaust gas by a reducing intermediate which is held on the basicity layer and generated by injecting hydrocarbons from the hydrocarbon feed valve within a predetermined range of period and a second NOX removal method in which an air-fuel ratio of an exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust purification catalyst is made rich by a period which is longer than said predetermined range to release and reduce NOX which is stored in the exhaust purification catalyst when the air-fuel ratio of the exhaust gas is lean are used (for example, see PTL 1).